This project has received funding from the European

Union’s Seventh Framework Programme for research,

technological development and demonstration under

grant agreement no. 613286.

WORKING PAPER

COMPARISON OF XIAMEN AND EU CASE STUDY CITIES AND OUTLOOK FOR COOPERATION

DECEMEBER 2016

YING ZHANG, YING CHEN, CHINESE ACADEMY OF SOCIAL SCIENCES/中国社会科学院

DORIAN FRIEDEN, ANDREAS TÜRK, INGRID KALTENEGGER, JOANNEUM RESEARCH

AUTHORS

Ying Zhang, Ying Chen, Chinese Academy Of Social Sciences

Dorian Frieden, Andreas Tuerk, Ingrid Kaltenegger, JOANNEUM RESEARCH

This report is in parts based on the structure and content of previous POCACITO deliverables, in particular:

D1.2: Report on Key Performance Indicators

D3.3: Integrated Case Studies Assessment Report

D4.4: Qualitative scenario building for post-carbon cities

D6.3: Report on activities in non-EU cities involved in the project (WP6)

Policy Brief No. 1 - LOW-CARBON URBAN DEVELOPMENT IN CHINA: CURRENT INITIATIVES, FUTURE PLANS AND

FIRST LESSONS

With thanks to:

Anthony Bigio and Max Grünig for commenting earlier versions of the paper

Manuscript completed in 12, 2016

Document title Comparison of Xiamen and EU case study cities and outlook for cooperation

Work Package WP6

Document Type Additional Deliverable

Date December 2016

ACKNOWLEDGEMENT & DISCLAIMER

The research leading to these results has received funding from the European Union FP7 SSH.2013.7.1-1: Post-

carbon cities in Europe: A long-term outlook under the grant agreement n°613286.

Neither the European Commission nor any person acting on behalf of the Commission is responsible for the use

which might be made of the following information. The views expressed in this publication are the sole

responsibility of the author and do not necessarily reflect the views of the European Commission.

Reproduction and translation for non-commercial purposes are authorised, provided the source is

acknowledged and the publisher is given prior notice and sent a copy.

TABLE OF CONTENTS

I EXECUTIVE SUMMARY 1

II INTRODUCTION 2

III METHODOLOGY 4

III.I QUANTITATIVE AND ACTIVITY-RELATED DATA 4

III.II STAKEHOLDER WORKSHOPS AND ENGAGEMENT: SCENARIO ESTABLISHMENT AND

VISION BUILDING 6

IV GENERAL CITY DESCRIPTION 6

IV.I TERRITORY 6

IV.II CLIMATE AND POPULATION 9

IV.III CITY DEVELOPMENT AND ECONOMY 10

V KEY STRATEGIES AND PROJECTS 11

VI KEY PERFORMANCE INDICATORS (KPI) 13

VI.I SOCIAL PERFORMANCE 13

VI.II ECONOMIC PERFORMANCE 16

VI.III ENVIRONMENTAL PERFORMANCE 18

VII PARTICIPATORY ASSESSMENT – ESTABLISHMENT OF VISIONS AND BACKCASTING

SCENARIOS 19

VII.I RESULTS OF THE VISION BUILDING 19

VII.II RESULTS FOR BACKCASTING SCENARIOS 20

VII.III OVERVIEW EVALUATION 21

VII.IV PARTICIPATORY PROCESS IN EU CITIES 21

VII.IV.I Post-carbon visions for European cities 21

VII.IV.II Backcasting exercise 23

VII.V COMPARATIVE DISCUSSION ON MAJOR CITY DEVELOPMENT ELEMENTS 23

VIII KEY STRENGTH AND CHALLENGES 25

IX CONCLUSIONS AND OUTLOOK FOR POTENTIAL COOPERATION BETWEEN XIAMEN AND EU

CITIES 28

ANNEX I: KEY PERFORMANCE INDICATORS USED IN THE POCACITO PROJECT 29

LIST OF TABLES

Table 1: Sectors covered during the Vision Workshops 22

LIST OF FIGURES

Figure 1: Dimensions and sub-dimensions of the Post-Carbon City Index 5

Figure 2: Area of Xiamen as compared to European case study cities 7

Figure 3: Overview map of Xiamen 8

Figure 4: Population size of Xiamen as compared to European case study cities in 2015 9

Figure 5: Population density of Xiamen as compared to European case study cities 10

Figure 6: The relative importance of sustainability key projects types – Xiamen and EU 13

Figure 7: Evolution of unemployment rate by gender (2006 and 2012) 14

Figure 8: Evolution of life expectancy (2004 and 2011, resp. 2000 and 2010 for Xiamen) 15

Figure 9: Percentage of green space over total urban area, EU cities and Xiamen 15

Figure 10: GDP per capita: EU cities and Xiamen 16

Figure 11: GDP per capita: EU cities and Xiamen 17

Figure 12: carbon intensity in EU cities and Xiamen 18

Figure 13: Key strengths and challenges 27

LIST OF ABBREVIATIONS

DRC

RBM

SEZ

Development Reform Commission

Renminbi, the Chinese currency with a Yuan as main unit

Special Economic Zones

1 • POCACITO PROJECT – COMPARISON OF XIAMEN AND EU CASE STUDY CITIES

I EXECUTIVE SUMMARY

This paper aims at expanding the analysis on low carbon development of selected European cities as

carried out in the POCACITO project to the Chinese City of Xiamen and compare it with the results for

EU cities. On this basis, similarities, differences and potential starting points for cooperation and

transfer of know-how or technologies are discussed. Based on generic quantitative city data as well as

“key performance indicators” for low carbon development a quantitative comparison between

Xiamen and EU case study cities is undertaken. The results show that Xiamen catches up quickly in

terms of economic development and currently may be situated already at the lower end of EU cities.

A participatory process for the development of visions and scenarios for low carbon city development

was carried out in Xiamen but to a more limited level as compared to EU cities. Besides the

identification of key projects in the city, this process contributed to the identification of similarities

with EU cities. Low carbon development is one of the important targets of Xiamen, that is part of the

first batch of low- carbon pilot projects announced in 2010. Xiamen was imagined by stakeholder to

become a liveable, sustainable, beautiful city with the charm of history and culture. Thus, a new

model of development was emphasized to achieve the targets, which means an innovative,

harmonious, green, open and inclusive development.

A major element for cooperation may be the sectors which are of major importance but also of

concern for cities in order to have a common ground for exchange. Given the historical and economic

development-related proximity to Europe and its specific situation as special economic zone and low

carbon pilot city, Xiamen might thereby act as a “hot spot” for cooperation. Xiamen is highly active in

the IT and technology sectors that are of relevance for, e.g. transport and the development of the

building sector. Tourism is a major economic sector and the coastal situation with its major harbour

provide for specific potentials, low carbon solutions as well as development challenges.

Overall, due to the relative high progress in the past, the reduced availability of low hanging fruits in

city development will require a high degree of innovation. Xiamen shared the importance of

technology and innovation as well as tourism with Litomerice, Barcelona, and Lisbon where the latter

two also share the costal situation and may thus be of prime interest for cooperation. Given that all

EU case study cities equally share important challenges such as in transport, cooperation may equally

be of interest but would require further analysis in order to identify more specific areas/projects in

which a valuable exchange would be possible.

2 • POCACITO PROJECT – COMPARISON OF XIAMEN AND EU CASE STUDY CITIES

II INTRODUCTION

This paper aims at expanding the analysis on low carbon development of selected European

cities as carried out in the POCACITO project to the Chinese City of Xiamen. On this ground,

similarities, differences and potential starting points for cooperation and transfer of know how

or technologies will be discussed.

A number of methodologies were applied within the POCACITO project to identify major

factors that impact city development. Information was gathered in a participatory way during

workshops in the case study cities of Barcelona, Copenhagen, Malmö, Istanbul, Lisbon,

Litoměřice, Milan, Turin, Rostock, and Zagreb. Workshops highlighted the current successes

and challenges the cities face and supported a discussion on city-specific innovative measures

based on lessons learned from local experience and best practices. Besides gathering of

general data such as size, location, and other, the collected and discussed data included so

called key performance indicators which were used to establish a “Post carbon city index”

serving to assess the status quo and to monitor city development.

During June 2016, stakeholder meetings, field trips, and interviews were organized by the

Chinese Academy for Social Sciences (CASS) in cooperation with the Xiamen Municipal

Development Reform Commission. Stakeholders included Xiamen Municipal officials and low

carbon development experts in Xiamen. During the stakeholder process, the role of

international cooperation was highlighted: Xiamen was said to have more similarities to

European cities than many other Chinese cities and stakeholders expressed the interest to

learn from European experiences.. On this basis, this paper seeks to undertake a first effort to

establish a profile of Xiamen comparable to the datasets gathered for European cities within

the POCACITO project, to compare this with European case study cities and draw first

conclusions on potential areas of cooperation.

There are various existing forms of cooperation between the EU and China. On a governmental

level there is an EU-China strategic partnership that provides a framework for cooperation,

including environment protection. To promote the project-level cooperation, the International

Council for Local

Environmental Initiatives (ICLEI) set up an East Asian office in Seoul in 2013 to strengthen the

connection with China. Another initiative is the UK-China Smartcities initiative,1 driving the

development of a Joint Smart Cities Laboratory. The initiative is co-located in Shanghai and

Manchester. In addition, the World Cities initiative2 promotes the exchange of experience and

best practices between the European Union and third countries. There is still a lot of room,

however, for improvement in know-how transfer. Due to barriers such as language skills, in

general, Chinese local governmental officials have few chances to go abroad to learn about

international experience or have access to material written in English. Thus, it is important to

fill the gap by introducing Chinese experts to foreign experiences, enabling them to

1 http://eu-chinasmartcities.eu

2 http://world-cities.eu/regions/chinese-regions/

3 • POCACITO PROJECT – COMPARISON OF XIAMEN AND EU CASE STUDY CITIES

disseminate them in China in their own words tailored to the Chinese context rather than

translating papers or documents. Transferring know-how or exporting technologies needs to

consider the differing technological, political or socioeconomic contexts in which smart cities

are implemented. There is no general approach to transfer know-how, but the transferability

depends a lot on the circumstances in specific cities. The city-to-city level work between the

EU and China may therefore play an important role and China has a rapidly growing number of

pilot cities to offer in which city-to-city collaboration should be established fast. At the same

time, China includes types of pilot projects that so far are less covered by the EU, such as in the

case of Xiamen green ports or industrial pilots. By providing a comparative analysis of the

Chinese city of Xiamen with the EU case study cities included in the POCACITO project, this

deliverable highlights differences and overlaps which may be useful for a further discussion on

potential cooperation on city level for low carbon development.

4 • POCACITO PROJECT – COMPARISON OF XIAMEN AND EU CASE STUDY CITIES

III METHODOLOGY

For gathering and comparing the core data of the assessment, this paper builds on existing

reports describing the project methodologies and summarizing the European case study city

assessments of the POCACITO project (in particular POCACITO Deliverables D1.1, D1.2, D3.3,

D4.4). This reports cover the cities of Barcelona, Malmö, Istanbul, Lisbon, Litoměřice, Milan,

Turin, Copenhagen, Rostock and Zagreb. The assessment of European case study cities

included the prior selection of key performance indicators (see below), and a data collection

and discussion process through meetings with city officials and local assessment workshops

with a broader group of stakeholders. The following two approaches were applied to gather

data within the project:

Top-down approach – completion of the indicators list according to a review of main

statistical findings, existing relevant strategic and planning documents, and legislation

to assure an accurate quantitative data collection;

Bottom-up approach – discussions with local authorities and other selected

stakeholders used to complement the collection of quantitative data and enrich the

contents of the case study assessment reports.

For Xiamen in principle the same approach was taken but in the bottom-up part the vision

building and backcasting was conducted in one single workshop, accompanied by bilateral

meetings and discussions over a certain timeframe.

III.I QUANTITATIVE AND ACTIVITY-RELATED DATA

Most of the required data for the EU could be retrieved by national/regional statistical offices,

government departments, environment and energy agencies, research institutes and non-

governmental organisations. The data collection was made for both years 2003 and 2012 in

order to compare their evolution. Already at EU level the comparability was challenging due to

the availability of data for different geographical scales and time periods and partial lack of

data. Data for Xiamen was only available from 2005 on and as the following chapters show not

always available or compatible. The analysis in this paper therefore has no strict focus on

completeness but on finding common ground with Xiamen given the available information.

Xiamen did not implement the full methodological vision building and backcasting process as

in the European cities, but similar information was gathered to provide a basis for comparison.

The comparison is based on three sets of data:

1. General data on city size and population

2. Key strategies and projects

3. Key performance indicators

General data: This includes the parameters city area (km²), population density

(inhabitans/km²), total number of inhabitants, share of foreign population, and population

5 • POCACITO PROJECT – COMPARISON OF XIAMEN AND EU CASE STUDY CITIES

structure by age group. These parameters served to give a general idea on potentially common

situations to be addressed.

Key strategies and projects: This refers to major strategies that are of relevance for a

sustainable city development. The presence of important projects related to sustainable city

development in the areas of energy, mobility, biodiversity, climate, waste water, and buildings,

as well as “smartness of the city” was identified. This served to identify overlaps or

complementarities in the activities taking place in each city which gives an idea on potential

areas of exchange.

Post-Carbon City Key performance indicators: These indicators were defined along the

dimensions social, environmental, and economic and a division into sub-dimensions as shown

in Figure 1 below. The application of these indicators allows for a standardized comparison of

cities. The full list of key performance indicators can be found in Annex II. For Xiamen, not all

indicators could be provided. More background information on these indicators can be found

in the POCACITO Deliverable D1.2: Report on Key Performance Indicators.

Figure 1: Dimensions and sub-dimensions of the Post-Carbon City Index

Source: POCACITO Deliverable D1.2: Report on Key Performance Indicators

6 • POCACITO PROJECT – COMPARISON OF XIAMEN AND EU CASE STUDY CITIES

III.II STAKEHOLDER WORKSHOPS AND ENGAGEMENT:

SCENARIO ESTABLISHMENT AND VISION BUILDING

At the core of the project was a series of participatory stakeholder workshops held in the case

study cities Barcelona, Malmö, Istanbul, Lisbon, Litoměřice, Milan/Turin, Rostock, and Zagreb.

The purpose of these workshops was to bring together local stakeholders to define a common

post-carbon vision for 2050 for Europe, and to outline an action plan guiding the path towards

achieving this vision. Comparable workshop was held in Xiamen.

For these stakeholder meetings, the Chinese Academy of Social Sciences hosted two meetings,

one for Xiamen Municipal officials, and another for energy conservation and low carbon

development experts in Xiamen.

The meeting with governmental officials was proceeded in the Chinese way, i.e. the

participants speak one by one.

The following key questions were put forth for discussions:

How would you like Xiamen to look like and to function in 2050?

What are the main problems or challenges for Xiamen low carbon development?

Can we establish a common vision for a post Carbon future of Xiamen in 2050?

What are the key elements for the Xiamen’s bright future?

How to overcome the difficulties to reach the long-term targets in Xiamen?

What are the milestones of a low carbon development road map for Xiamen?

How can you or your division contribute to build Xiamen as a pioneer low carbon city

in China?

IV GENERAL CITY DESCRIPTION

IV.I TERRITORY

Xiamen is a sub-provincial city in south-eastern Fujian, beside the Taiwan Strait. It is divided

into six districts: Huli, Siming, Jimei, Tong'an, Haicang, and Xiang'an. Its urban core grew up

from the port of Xiamen on southern Xiamen Island, now located within the Siming District. It

now also includes the Gulangyu Island and the rugged coast of the mainland from the

northeast bank of the Jiulong River in the west to the islands of Xiang'an in the east. Xiamen is

divided between Huli District in the north and Siming District in the south. Siming also includes

Gulangyu.

7 • POCACITO PROJECT – COMPARISON OF XIAMEN AND EU CASE STUDY CITIES

Altogether, these cover an area of 1,699.39 square kilometres. The urbanized area of the city

has spread from its original island to include parts of all six of its districts. This area connects

to Quanzhou in the north and Zhangzhou in the west, making up a metropolis of more than

five million people.

Figure 2: Area of Xiamen as compared to European case study cities

The Xiamen Island was considered to possess one of the world's greatest natural harbours in

Yundang Bay, but Fujian's international trade was long restricted to Quanzhou or

to Guangzhou in Guangdong. Due to the siltification of Quanzhou's harbour, Britain insisted

that Xiamen be opened to foreign trade in the treaty that ended the First Opium War in 1842.

Under the Qing Dynasty (the last Dynasty before the founding of the PR China), both before

and after the war, there was large-scale emigration of Chinese from southern Fujian

spread Hokkien-speaking communities to Singapore, Malaysia, and Indonesia. The overseas

Chinese continue to support Xiamen's educational and cultural institutions. As part

of China's Opening up policy under Deng Xiaoping, Xiamen became one of the original

four special economic zones (SEZ) opened to foreign investment and trade in the early 1980s.

SEZs in China can utilize an economic management system that is more attractive for foreign

and domestic firms to do business than in the rest of mainland China. In SEZs foreign and

domestic trade and investment are conducted without the authorization of the Chinese central

government in Beijing. This includes promotion of co-operation between domestic enterprises

and imports of advanced foreign equipment and technology. In fact, the Chinese SEZs are not

8 • POCACITO PROJECT – COMPARISON OF XIAMEN AND EU CASE STUDY CITIES

only “windows” to promote exchange between China and the rest of the world but also testing

laboratories to experiment with economic, social, and political reform (Mohiuddin et al 2014)3.

Its former harbour was enclosed using land excavated during the city's expansion. The city is

known for its mild climate, Hoklo (Hokkien-speaking communities’) influence and colonial

architecture, as well as its relatively low pollution.

Figure 3: Overview map of Xiamen

3 Mohiuddin et al, 2014: The Special Economic Zone as a Locomotive for Green Development in China. Asian Social

Science 10(18):109-121 · August 2014

9 • POCACITO PROJECT – COMPARISON OF XIAMEN AND EU CASE STUDY CITIES

IV.II CLIMATE AND POPULATION

Xiamen has a monsoonal humid subtropical climate, characterized by long, hot and humid

summers (but moderate compared to much of the rest of the province) and short, mild and

dry winters. According to the detailed 2010 national Census that is carried out every ten years,

Xiamen had a population of 3,531,347 inhabitants, almost 1.8 times the population counted

for the last census in 2000 (which consisted of 2,053,070 inhabitants). The annual average

population growth was of 5.57% for the period 2000–2010, however this includes the

population explosion in the Jimei district, which quadrupled since the prior census while the

Huli district's population more than doubled. According to the less detailed but most current

2015 statistics, the permanently resident population was 1,967,800 at the end of 2015, and

the population residing at least half a year was 3.86 million inhabitants. This leads to a

population density of 1,158 inhab/km² for permanent residents and 2,272 inhab/km² including

half year residents.

Figure 4: Population size of Xiamen as compared to European case study cities in 2015

10 • POCACITO PROJECT – COMPARISON OF XIAMEN AND EU CASE STUDY CITIES

Figure 5: Population density of Xiamen as compared to European case study cities

IV.III CITY DEVELOPMENT AND ECONOMY

Known in the West as Amoy, Xiamen has a long history as a port city, and later became a

center of British trade in the 19th century and Xiamen retains a strong international flavour.

Xiamen was part of the first batch of low- carbon pilot projects announced in 2010, that

involved five provinces (Guangdong, Liaoning, Hubei, Shaanxi and Yunnan) and eight cities

(Tianjin, Chongqing, Shenzhen, Xiamen, Hangzhou, Nanchang, Guiyang and Baoding), and the

first one in Fujian Province.4 Xiamen’s Municipal Development Reform Commission (DRC) takes

lead to promote low carbon development. An inter-division steering group was established to

enhance coordination among governmental divisions in 2011. The GDP per capita in 2015 was

about $14000. The development level in Xiamen, especially of the Xiamen Island, the core area

of Xiamen, is relatively high in eastern China, and obviously higher than other cities in middle

and western China. Xiamen is already well known for liveability with good conditions of natural

resources and environment.

In 2015, the energy consumption and carbon emission per unit of GDP were 0.437 tce/10000

yuan RMB and 0.776 tCO2/10000 yuan RMB, relatively low for large and medium size cities in

4Official source of the National Development and Reform Commission in Chinese:

http://www.gov.cn/zwgk/2010-08/10/content_1675733.htm

11 • POCACITO PROJECT – COMPARISON OF XIAMEN AND EU CASE STUDY CITIES

China5. The share of coal in the energy mix is only 24%. The service sector in the economic

structure has a share of already 55.8%.

V KEY STRATEGIES AND PROJECTS

Xiamen’s basic development principle is “To lay equal stress on economic development and

ecological protection, and to seek to achieve economic and environmental win-win results”.

Xiamen’s government target is to construct an ecological and cultivated city in China. Green

development is the most important guideline for Xiamen. Xiamen takes many concrete

measures to realize low-carbon transformation, including the enhancement of top-level urban

design, to strictly implement the scientific planning, or design an ecological construction

mechanisms. Xiamen is implementing several low-carbon pilot community projects and

requires key companies to release GHG emission reports. Xiamen has also set a specific

emission peak target and determined to achieve its CO2 emission peak during the period 2020-

2022 with the amount around 40.14 million tons of CO2. With the estimated population of 5.5

million people at that time, Xiamen’s per capita emission should be around 7.2 tons of CO2.

As examples for relevant projects in Xiamen the fields of emission inventories, mobility, and buildings can be mentioned as briefly described below.

PROJECT FACTSHEET

Title Carbon emission inventory

Area of implementation

(city, neighbourhood, etc)

City of Xiamen

Project description

Aims To make clear the main sources of Xiamen‘s carbon emission

and set specific low-carbon development planning and policies.

Content To finish the 2005-2010 Xiamen’s carbon emission

inventory compilation task

Start the 2011-2014 carbon emission inventory

compilation work.

5 Source: City of Xiamen

12 • POCACITO PROJECT – COMPARISON OF XIAMEN AND EU CASE STUDY CITIES

PROJECT FACTSHEET

Title Policies to promote the application of new energy vehicles

Area of implementation

(city, neighbourhood,

etc.)

City of Xiamen

Project description

Aims To promote the wide application of clean and low-carbon

transportation systems

Content By 2015, Xiamen’s new buses were aimed to be all new energy

vehicles with several routes using pure electric buses. This aim

was almost achieved with in the share now being over 90%.

PROJECT FACTSHEET

Title Low-carbon pilot city construction projects of Xiamen

Area of implementation

(city, neighbourhood,

etc.)

City of Xiamen

Project description

Aims Xiamen is chosen as one of China‘s low-carbon pilot cities and

explores new measures and actions in constructing low-carbon

cities.

Content Include a series of concrete measures in low-carbon

technology innovation, promote low-carbon buildings, low-

carbon transportation and an increase of carbon sinks and

forest coverage.

13 • POCACITO PROJECT – COMPARISON OF XIAMEN AND EU CASE STUDY CITIES

The table below shows a comparative overview of the sectors in which major city development

projects relating to low carbon development are carried out. The importance of energy and

mobility is comparable to most European cities, while the importance of buildings and smart

city projects seems to be higher than in most EU cities. This is caused by the large population

growth in Xiamen. Also waste has a high importance while this became a lower issue in EU

cities over the last decade.

Cities Energy Mobility Biodiversity Climate Waste Water Buildings Smart cities

Xiamen

Barcelona

Istanbul

Lisbon

Litomerice

Malmo

Milan

Turin

Rostock

Zagreb

Figure 6: The relative importance of sustainability key projects types – Xiamen and EU

Source: Own estimation for Xiamen, EU overview from POCACITO Deliverable D3.3

VI KEY PERFORMANCE INDICATORS (KPI)

VI.I SOCIAL PERFORMANCE

UNEMPLOYMENT LEVEL

The level of registered unemployed in Xiamen is at the low end as compared to EU cities. As

opposed to most European cities which showed an increased unemployment level between

2006 and 2012 (economic crisis), the rate in Xiamen showed a slight decrease.

14 • POCACITO PROJECT – COMPARISON OF XIAMEN AND EU CASE STUDY CITIES

Figure 7: Evolution of unemployment rate by gender (2006 and 2012)

Source for EU cities: POCACITO Deliverable D3.3

POVERTY LEVEL

The poverty level could only be provided in terms of the share of the population receiving

governmental support rather than using a poverty threshold. Therefore, the data provided is

not comparable to European statistics. The share of the population receiving governmental

support is about 2% and slightly deceased by 2015. In the EU poverty levels were between 14

and 18% in 2005 but rise to a range of 16-22% in 2012. The increasing poverty levels in the EU

were particular visible during the timeframe of the economic crisis (2011).

AVERAGE LIFE EXPECTANCY

Life expectancy was not available for the city of Xiamen, however data for Fujian Province is

shown in the graph below. Life expectancy is below all European values, at least until 2010, but

showed an important increase between 2000 and 2010.

15 • POCACITO PROJECT – COMPARISON OF XIAMEN AND EU CASE STUDY CITIES

Figure 8: Evolution of life expectancy (2004 and 2011, resp. 2000 and 2010 for Xiamen)

Source for EU cities: POCACITO Deliverable D3.3

GREEN SPACE AVAILABILITY

The green space availability is relative high in Xiamen and ranks after Malmö and Rostock in

the EU cities.

Figure 9: Percentage of green space over total urban area, EU cities and Xiamen

16 • POCACITO PROJECT – COMPARISON OF XIAMEN AND EU CASE STUDY CITIES

VI.II ECONOMIC PERFORMANCE

LEVEL OF WEALTH – GDP PER CAPITA

In terms of GDP per capita, Xiamen is still below all European cities but given its economic

growth it may reach some of the European case study cities in the coming years.

Figure 10: GDP per capita: EU cities and Xiamen

Source for EU cities: POCACITO Deliverable D3.3

EMPLOYMENT BY SECTORS

As opposed to European cities Xiamen showed a relatively important share of agriculture in

2005 and had a more balanced distribution between the service sector and industry. All

European cities showed a higher service sector share already in 2004 as compared to

employment in industry and in most cases this share increased. This shift towards the service

sector is much more apparent in Xiamen where the highest share was industry in 2005 and

became the service sector in 2011 while agriculture has completely lost importance.

17 • POCACITO PROJECT – COMPARISON OF XIAMEN AND EU CASE STUDY CITIES

Figure 11: GDP per capita: EU cities and Xiamen

BUDGET DEFICIT

A GDP-related annual debt was not available for Xiamen. Between 2005 and 2015 the budget

deficit, i.e. the share of the fiscal expenditures that could not be covered by the local fiscal

revenues, varied between 1% in 2014 and 18% in 2005 with no clear tendency over time.

R&D INTENSITY

For the R&D intensity, no GDP-related data was available for Xiamen. The share of R&D

expenditures was available as share of the public budget and varied between 3,9% and 3,1%

since 2005. This is comparable to the highest GDP-related expenditures for Europe which had

the highest value in Malmö while all other EU cities stayed below 3% in 2011 with the lowest

value of below 1% being the share in Litomerice.

18 • POCACITO PROJECT – COMPARISON OF XIAMEN AND EU CASE STUDY CITIES

VI.III ENVIRONMENTAL PERFORMANCE

ENERGY CONSUMPTION BY SECTORS

Xiamen shows an important increase of industrial (53%) and household (98%) electricity

consumption between 2005 and 2010 (67% combined). This is way above the values for

European cities and to be seen in connection to the increasing economic performance

(doubled GDP during that period) while Europe importantly suffered from the economic crisis.

CARBON EMISSIONS INTENSITY

The carbon emission intensity could be gathered for industrial enterprises whose total annual

energy consumption corresponds to more than 10000 tons of coal equivalent (tce). Xiamen’s

carbon intensity has stronger dropped between 2014 and 2015 while slowly being reduced in

the years before. The strong rise of the service sector may have contributed, but still Xiamen

has important industrial activities. The carbon intensity has developed from the higher range

to one of the lowest intensities as compared to European cities (note that the shown years

deviate). It has to be noted however that the CO2 emissions of Xiamen may not have the same

level of accuracy than in the EU.

Figure 12: Carbon intensity in EU cities and Xiamen

19 • POCACITO PROJECT – COMPARISON OF XIAMEN AND EU CASE STUDY CITIES

VII PARTICIPATORY ASSESSMENT –

ESTABLISHMENT OF VISIONS AND

BACKCASTING SCENARIOS

VII.I RESULTS OF THE VISION BUILDING

Although all stakeholders had own opinions and priorities, the common vision for 2050 can be

described as “Beautiful Xiamen Strategy”, which refers to not only the beautiful environment

but also economic prosperity and social advancement.

The great challenge for Xiamen is how to achieve green and low carbon development to

improve life quality for all residents while reaching an emission peak as soon as possible.

Overall in the stakeholder meetings there were discussions on potentials and costs: some

participants were worried Xiamen’s performance in energy efficiency and low carbon emission

is already better than other large and medium size cities. There will be less “low hanging fruits”

left (opportunities to reduce emissions with low costs). Xiamen has to make more efforts to

find innovative approaches for low carbon development. Some important sectors and areas

were frequently mentioned:

Transportation: Consisting of the core Xiamen island and several districts outside,

Xiamen has bridges to connect them. Transportation is a big problem for many young

commuters who may work on the Xiamen island but live outside due to high prices of

housing. The first subway line is under construction. A new express bicycle road of 7.6

kilometres will be built soon.

Ports: Xiamen has 4 portal areas close to the urban area. Ports are an important cause

of energy intensive activities and high pollution, which need more attention regarding

energy conservation and emission reduction.

Tourism: Xiamen has a beautiful beach as well as historical and cultural heritages such

as the Gulangyu Island. Tourism has a great potential for growth. The local community is

actively advocating environmental protection, especially a waste sorting and treatment

system. The conception of low carbon tourism needs to be developed and put into

operation.

Other important issues that stakeholder discusses included:

Governance: Government representatives fully recognized their responsibilities in leading

to a low carbon development. NGOs are active in advocating environmental protection.

The government can cooperate with NGOs to raise public awareness and promote low

carbon development. Although there are many NGOs now in China, the role of NGOs is

not as important than in western countries.

International cooperation: Being one of the earliest Special Economic Zones, Xiamen is

quite open and actively engaging in international cooperation.

20 • POCACITO PROJECT – COMPARISON OF XIAMEN AND EU CASE STUDY CITIES

Xiamen has more socioeconomic similarities to European cities because Xiamen’s

economy is more developed and the economic structure is highly dependent on the

tertiary sector. It would therefore like to learn from European low carbon city

experiences. Xiamen asked for specific examples and concreate information of policies

and best practices of post carbon cities in the EU.

Xiamen is already applying IT in smart city construction in Xiamen, such as smart

transportation and security systems. Xiamen has a great potential to develop an IT industry

and apply IT to improve energy efficiency and reduction of emissions in cities.

VII.II RESULTS FOR BACKCASTING SCENARIOS

China is developing fast since its opening and reforming in 1980s. Stakeholders had difficulties

to imagine a long-term vision for 2050. They are more comfortable to discuss the reality, short

term targets for the 13th Five Year Plan (2016-2020) and medium term targets for 2030 and

set up these targets as milestones for the vision for 2050.

The outline of Xiamen’s Social and Economic Development in the 13th Five Year Plan was

adopted by Xiamen People’s Congress in January 2016. The average economic growth was

envisioned to be 8.5%, higher than the national target of around 7%. Participants highlighted

that besides GDP, Xiamen is the first city in China to set up an HDI as an important target for

social and economic development, and it has the aim to increase the HDI from 0.856 in 2015 to

0.89 in 2020, reaching the medium level of developed countries. Based on the development

level in 2015, about 30 targets were set up for 2020 in the 13th Five Year Plan including

economic development, innovation driven welfare and ecological civilization. For example,

Xiamen plans to increase the urbanization rate from 44% to 52%, keep the annual growth of

import and export trade by 6%, increase R&D expenditure from 3% to 4%, internet access at

85%, etc.

The most important milestone of low carbon development is the emission peak. China

submitted an INDC and declared to reach the emission peak around 2030 and make efforts to

achieve it as early as possible. Following the national target of the emission peak, up to now 23

Chinese cities and provinces have agreed to peak their emissions by or before 2030, and 8 by

or before 2020. For example, Beijing and Guangzhou have agreed to peak by 2020. But up to

now, Xiamen as one of the first batch low carbon pilot cities, has not set up a target year for its

emission peak. The Xiamen municipal DRC has the position that more research is needed to

decide Xiamen’s target year of emissions peak and make a concreate road map to achieve the

target although the period 2020-2022 is envisaged. The Xiamen government has invited

experts to do research work on it. Other participants also hesitated to project Xiamen’s peak

year. Several experts said that emission curve will stay relatively flat after the peak for some

time.

21 • POCACITO PROJECT – COMPARISON OF XIAMEN AND EU CASE STUDY CITIES

VII.III OVERVIEW EVALUATION

The city representatives imagine Xiamen will be one of pioneer city to achieve the “Dream of

China” in 2050. At that time, not only GDP per capita but also carbon emissions per unit of GDP

will reach a similar level as in developed countries. Definitely low carbon development is one

of the important targets. Xiamen was imagined to be a liveable, sustainable, beautiful city with

the charm of history and culture. Thus, a new model of development was emphasized to

achieve the targets, which means an innovative, harmonious, green, open and inclusive

development. The milestones were set for the 13th Five Year Plan (2016-2020) and are basis

for 2030.

VII.IV PARTICIPATORY PROCESS IN EU CITIES

VII.IV.I POST-CARBON VISIONS FOR EUROPEAN CITIES

Table 1 provides an overview of the sectors covered during the Vision Workshop in Xiamen

and in the EU case study cities. In the following some explanation is provided on the sectors of

major interest for Xiamen, these explanations are based on the POCACITO deliverable 4.4.

Even though these sectors were not all addressed in the Xiamen workshops, it becomes

evident from the other sources that they are partly equally on the agenda of city development

in Xiamen.

As far as energy is concerned, local visions in the EU touch on energy efficient development,

self-production and consumption of energy, alternative energy sources, increased use of and

investment in clean energy, regulation of energy policies at city level, energy and the carbon

market, and calculations of emissions from buildings. Visions on energy covered 4 categories

for urban action, namely reform of energy generation and distribution; concepts, plans, and

performance; reducing energy consumption; and energy efficient or energy generating

buildings.

Regarding transport, visions contain a range of qualitative ideas such as efficient, clean, and

accessible public transport to management and form of transport means, like sharing and

smart logistics. Issues covered in the transport and mobility sector can be divided into five

main categories: quality of transport; carbon-free transport; public over private transport;

integration, connection, and multimodality; and reduced impact from traffic.

With regards to land use, visions focused mainly on the quality of the urban environment and

efficient management of natural resources, as well as buildings and the re-use of urban areas.

With regards to urban economics, visions are focused on improving competitiveness or on the

transition of the urban economy to a sustainable low-carbon economy.

Related to social issues, visions aim at social inclusion, increase safety, and enhance cultural

identity. In this context, also the planning of city development, transportation, and

infrastructure were discussed as they positively affect quality of life in the city.

Related to waste and consumption, visions see cities under a metabolism approach, where

inputs and outputs of matter become relevant and allow for addressing the phenomena of

22 • POCACITO PROJECT – COMPARISON OF XIAMEN AND EU CASE STUDY CITIES

carbon leakage. Consumption and waste visions can be categorised into 3 main areas: waste

reduction, efficient use of resource, and closed cycle.

For tourism, visions seek a balance between tourism and quality of life for the local population,

where the city is attractive for tourism and tourism contributes significantly to the local

economy.

As far as food production is concerned, visions focus on self-sufficiency through local

production of food, and in turn reduced transport of food, as well as healthy eating and

enjoying a high quality of food.

Finally, for the technological sector, visions see technology and technological innovation as

tools for the post-carbon transition, which will help drive economic development. Visions on

technology and innovation include ideas such as smart technology and integrated systems and

networks.

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Xiamen x x x x x

Barcelona x x x x x x x x x

Istanbul x x x x x x x x x

Litoměřice x x x x x x x x x x x

Lisbon x x x x x x x x x

Malmö x x x x x x x x

Milan x x x x x x x x x x

Rostock x x x x x x x x

Turin x x x x x

Zagreb x x x x x x x x x

Table 1: Sectors covered during the Vision Workshops in EU cities and Xiamen

Source for the EU cities: POCACITO deliverable 4.4

23 • POCACITO PROJECT – COMPARISON OF XIAMEN AND EU CASE STUDY CITIES

VII.IV.II BACKCASTING EXERCISE

The following list provides some examples for actions that were detailed for the different

sectors in the local scenarios (POCACITO Deliverable 4.4) and which correspond to key issues,

projects and interests in Xiamen:

Stakeholders from Milan identified the development of informatics infrastructure,

including smart stops and smart times for public transportation on buses, trains, and

trams, as a possible action in the sector of urban planning measures to achieve the

post-carbon vision of Milan as a city that is more accessible and usable without a car.

Stakeholders from Istanbul identified waterfront planning and easy accessibility to

parks and green areas as possible actions to achieve the vision of integrated water and

green lands.

Stakeholders from Turin identifyied enhancing social housing, innovating tools and

resources for welfare, and improving welfare through information and

communications technology as possible actions to achieve the vision of a city with high

birth rates, strong resilience, high quality of life and strong identity.

Stakeholders from Milan identified increased waste sorting, with the separation of

waste and recyclables more user-friendly and more efficient, and increased efficiency

of energy recovery of residual waste as possible actions to achieve the vision of reuse

and recycling of materials.

Stakeholders from Malmö identified large-scale cultivation of shrimp, algae, and

vegetables using residual heat, and introduction of government subsidy of fossil-free

and sustainable agriculture as possible actions to achieve the vision of city gardening

and farming, and optimising the use of arable land by producing food in a resource

efficient and large scale manner outside the city and in small scale inside the city.

Stakeholders from Istanbul identified the introduction of new approaches to R&D and

the use of renewable technology for natural resource usage, transportation, buildings

and industry as possible actions to achieve the vision of a city which uses innovative

R&D approaches for development and innovative activities.

VII.V COMPARATIVE DISCUSSION ON MAJOR CITY

DEVELOPMENT ELEMENTS

Based on the above, the following areas can be identifies as major sectoral elements identified

for Xiamen’s city development. As shown above for the sectors addressed during the vision

workshops, transport, energy and economic development are of high importance for most EU

cities as well. The technological focus and the importance of tourism distinguish Xiamen from a

number of EU cities. Barcelona, Litomerice, and Lisbon are the EU cities that covered both of

these sectors as well. Also resource efficient food production is not an issue yet in Xiamen.

24 • POCACITO PROJECT – COMPARISON OF XIAMEN AND EU CASE STUDY CITIES

Energy: Energy generation is, besides transport, most important in EU cities. Xiamen is active

in improving energy efficiency, see also technology below. Regarding energy generation most

of Xiamen’s energy generation is from outside of Xiamen itself. Xiamen is poor in fossil fuel

energy reserves. There is only one power generation plant, but the coal is also from other

parts of China. There are however two waste incineration power plants.

Transport: Besides energy generation, transport is most important in EU cities. This is

comparable to Xiamen with the particularity that transport in Xiamen is characterized by a

great amount of daily business transport from and to the main Island.

Economic growth and trade: Xiamen’s target is above the national average and use of the HDI

was introduced with a 2020 target corresponding to the medium level of developed countries.

In Europe, economic development was discussed to be a prime issue in Milan, Turin and

Istanbul.

Tourism: Mediterranean cities may show comparable patterns and dependency on tourism as

well as impacts from climate change and tourism was considered for these a relevant factor

for local, post-carbon visions (see report D4.1).

Technological solutions and innovation: An important characteristic of Xiamen is the

development of IT solutions with are, for instance, applied in the areas of energy efficiency and

construction in general, contributing to the development of low-carbon buildings and smart

city development. This generates an important potential for low-carbon city development

based on local know-how and technologies.

Quality of life and the attractiveness of Xiamen can also be highlighted as important elements

of the city as it was imagined in the future. This is comparable to EU cities, even though the

focus on tourism is not present in all EU cities.

Land use: increased carbon sink and forest coverage are targeted by Xiamen’s activities as low-

carbon pilot city and can benefit from the high green space availability

Waste: Waste sorting and treatment were mentioned in the vision building workshops in

connection with tourism and are of high importance in Xiamen.

25 • POCACITO PROJECT – COMPARISON OF XIAMEN AND EU CASE STUDY CITIES

VIII KEY STRENGTH AND CHALLENGES

The strengths and challenges of low-carbon development in Xiamen are briefly summarized in

the table below in comparison with results for the EU.

CITIES STRENGHTS CHALLENGES

Xiamen National framework defining a target

year for the carbon peak is expected.

Great touristic potential (beach,

historical and cultural heritages).

Community actively engaged in

environmental protection. Open and

actively engaging in international

cooperation. Potential of IT and

application in smart city construction

(e.g. smart transportation and security

system) may be expanded to energy

efficiency and emission reduction.

Being a special economic zone, this

provides for more freedom, growth and

cooperation as compared to other

Chinese cities.

Soon achievement of the carbon peak but

unclear when.,

Low-cost options may already be largely

exhausted (high degree of innovation

needed). High transportation requirements

due to high living costs in central areas.

Emissions and pollution by port activities need

to be addressed. Establishment of low carbon

tourism.

Barcelona At the forefront of smart cities

movement

Several strategies which are impacting

carbon emissions

Sustainability strategies are being

implemented: transports, green space,

waste and water management

Strong role of Area Metropolitana de

Barcelona as a coordinating body

Influx of young immigrants

Increased share of the population at risk of

exclusion and poverty

Increased level of unemployment

Need to find a balance between the need to

maintain it as a tourist centre, while keeping

its local character

Growing level of municipal indebtedness

26 • POCACITO PROJECT – COMPARISON OF XIAMEN AND EU CASE STUDY CITIES

CITIES STRENGHTS CHALLENGES

Istanbul Initial stage of development towards a

post-carbon city

Investments in public transportation

Improvement of social performance

Increase in level of wealth and

economic attraction

Population increase and growing urbanisation

Sprawl of the city towards peripheries caused

by growing population

Air and environmental pollution; stress on

natural protection areas and forests

Environmental performance as the weakest

dimension and most underestimated by city

Lisbon Several strategies and plans are being

implemented in the area of mobility

and energy, but still with medium

impact

Reduction of pollutants and carbon

emissions

Expressive reduction of water losses

Improvement of public finances

Loss of population in the city centre and aging

people

Increase in unemployment and poverty levels

Use of car as the privileged mode of

transportation

Need to improve performance in waste

management and recovery

Need to invest in buildings renovation

Litomerice One of pioneer cities in Czech Republic

aiming at energy efficiency and

renewable energy production

Ambition to become an energy self-

sufficient city

Emphasis on the geothermal power

plant project

Small city that is from large extent influenced

by the development of higher territorial units

Dependence on the availability of external

financial resources

Malmo Ambitious energy strategy

Sustainable transportation is on the

right track

Innovative city with a positive trend in

GDP per capita

Young and multicultural city

Economic inequity in the city

Segregated city with evidence of social unrest

(high immigration numbers)

No protocol to calculate the carbon footprint

of the city

Milan Leading city in economic and social

areas

Innovative city

Advantage compared to Italian cities in terms

of environmental standards, but behind

European average standards

Need to invest in the shift towards a zero-

carbon paradigm and to increase civil

awareness

Poor air quality, high pollution

Aged building stock

27 • POCACITO PROJECT – COMPARISON OF XIAMEN AND EU CASE STUDY CITIES

CITIES STRENGHTS CHALLENGES

Turin Innovative city

Relevant share of green areas

Increase in unemployment and decrease in

GDP (due to strong specialisation)

High percentage of people in risk of poverty

Poor air quality, high pollution

Stock of debt is high

Rostock Important measures to reduce

environmental footprint

Improvement of air quality, waste and

water management and sustainable

mobility

Weak infrastructure and social challenges

regarding poverty and unemployment in the

region

Weak financial situation

Zagreb Growing number of citizens and

transition groups paving the way

towards a post-carbon paradigm

(bottom-up approach)

Participation in major EU and global

initiatives aiming at CO2 reduction

Lack of strategic planning

Need of social participation in the transition

towards a post-carbon city

Critical success factors: social –

unemployment and poverty; environment –

public transportation and municipal waste

management; economic – GDP per capita,

business survival and social entrepreneurship

Figure 13: Key strengths and challenges

Source for EU cities: POCACITO Deliverable 3.3

28 • POCACITO PROJECT – COMPARISON OF XIAMEN AND EU CASE STUDY CITIES

IX CONCLUSIONS AND OUTLOOK FOR

POTENTIAL COOPERATION BETWEEN

XIAMEN AND EU CITIES

Xiamen is a particular case for a Chinese city given that it is one of the first batch of low carbon

pilot cities in China. In addition, as special economic zone, Xiamen has opened up for

international cooperation and learning to an over-average degree since 1979. Xiamen follows a

typical development path with an important shift from agricultural and industrial activities to

the tertiary sector and quickly caches up in terms of economic development with EU cities.

Given the speed of development and a focus on specific sectors such as urban

planning/buildings, cooperation may not be a one-way benefit but European cities might learn

from Xiamen as well and jointly address common issues. During workshops in Xiamen, a high

interest in international cooperation and learning was expressed. This provides a good ground

for cooperation with European cities. Given the historical and economic development-related

proximity to Europe and its specific situation as special economic zone and low carbon pilot

city, Xiamen might thereby act as a “hot spot” for cooperation.

The comparably high economic development provides also opportunities for a locally created

innovation on low-carbon city development including IT, logistics, energy efficiency and

building technology. A major additional area of highest important for further development is

transport which is of particular relevance due to the high amount of commuting workers and

employees as well as the island situation. Besides industry, tourism is an important economic

factor which contributes to the Xiamen’S aim to develop as a liveable and attractive city. In

addition to its touristic aspects, the coastal situation provides for a major harbour which at the

same time is of high economic importance and challenging in terms of low-carbon

development.

Overall, due to the relative high progress in the past, the reduced availability of low hanging

fruits in city development will require a high degree of innovation. Xiamen shared the

importance of technology and innovation as well as tourism with Litomerice, Barcelona, and

Lisbon where the latter two also share the costal situation and may thus be of prime interest

for cooperation. Given that all EU case study cities equally share important challenges such as

in transport, cooperation may equally be of interest but would require further analysis in

order to identify more specific areas/projects in which a valuable exchange would be possible.

29 • POCACITO PROJECT – COMPARISON OF XIAMEN AND EU CASE STUDY CITIES

ANNEX I: KEY PERFORMANCE INDICATORS USED IN THE POCACITO PROJECT

30 • POCACITO PROJECT – COMPARISON OF XIAMEN AND EU CASE STUDY CITIES